Moto Guzzi V7 Racer - thoughts?

[bpw]

Some of my slowest bikes have been my most fun bikes...

 

[DocWong]

In my book, Guzzis are unique and worth looking at.

What you value really depends on you and what you like. I certainly think this one looks way cool.

Guzzis have a very special place in my heart.

 

[VicTim]

I get that the cruiser crowd is traditional and demand the traditional approach. The XR1200 is not a cruiser. Why not outfit such a cool bike with an engine selection that makes sense for the bike's purpose? A twin is still IDEAL. Why not liquid cooled? Why not OHC? Why not lighter? That bike with a suzuki twin would be :boobies!! Better yet, why not outfit the XR1200 with the Rotax 1125 designed in conjunction with Buell. That would be

The xr1200 has oil cooled heads the same as Beull. I don't think you really know what you're talking about.

 

[Carlo]

It's not that it's a twin. It's not that it's air cooled. Hell, I think the Ducati air cooled two valve engines are fantastic.

It's the 45 degree angle, the OHV configuration and the HEFT tat I can't get over.

I bet the bike is a TON of fun to ride. My conjecture is that it would be even MORE fun with a different engine.

I get that the cruiser crowd is traditional and demand the traditional approach. The XR1200 is not a cruiser. Why not outfit such a cool bike with an engine selection that makes sense for the bike's purpose? A twin is still IDEAL. Why not liquid cooled? Why not OHC? Why not lighter? That bike with a suzuki twin would be :boobies!! Better yet, why not outfit the XR1200 with the Rotax 1125 designed in conjunction with Buell. That would be

The Moto Guzzi engine is 90 degrees, and was developed at least 5 years before Ducati came out with their own 90 degree V-twin.

(in support of your arguments, it was adapted from a tractor engine!)

 

[guzziguy]

I figure if the V7R has a single disc front brake, adjustment free suspension, and 50hp. Why not start with a cheap POS, that is reliable?

What particular reliability issues did you experience with Guzzi.
Would be interested to know.
I only ask because there are a lot of bar stool experts out there, who often comment based on stuff they read 30 years ago.
I suspect you're one of those very same bullshitters.
Look forward to yhearing of your experiences of ownership.
Oh and I just seen what you ride

(in support of your arguments, it was adapted from a tractor engine!)

Which is a myth, by the way

It was designed as a motorcycle engine, to compete for an Italian police motorcycle contract.

so, are we done here?

I just don't wanna beat up on the new guy, what with the Queen's Celebration & all......

/thread....

Oh don't worry.
It would take a thousand times what you've offered up so far to make me flinch, and as for the Royal Family.
Glorified benefit cheats as far as I'm concerned.

 

[auntiebling]

Glorified benefit cheats as far as I'm concerned.

and from this side of the pond, the glory is long gone. i wonder if they're related to the kardashians?

 

[Carlo]

Which is a myth, by the way

It was designed as a motorcycle engine, to compete for an Italian police motorcycle contract.

Which is a myth that was perpetuated by both The Classic Motorcycle and Classic Bike years ago, including pictures of a three-wheeled vehicle with a 90 degree transversely mounted engine.
The 700cc engine that was first used in the V7 may have been designed from the ground up as a motorcycle engine, but there was obviously another engine of the same configuration in use which may have served as a starting point.
It was built for a military contract in 1963.

 

[louemc]

Yeh, but Moto Guzzi did make racebikes, and the original V7 Sport must have had a lot more HP than this new one; a friend of mine owns one which was clocked at 129 mph on the front straight at Portland International back in the day.
My Aprilia Caponord could barely manage 125 before I had to brake hard for turn 1.
Nothing wrong with trading on past glory, that's all Triumph is doing with the Thruxton, and I think this is way better looking, and undoubtedly sounds better too.

I had a Guzzi 850 LeMans (in Portland).

 

[guzziguy]

Which is a myth that was perpetuated by both The Classic Motorcycle and Classic Bike years ago, including pictures of a three-wheeled vehicle with a 90 degree transversely mounted engine.
The 700cc engine that was first used in the V7 may have been designed from the ground up as a motorcycle engine, but there was obviously another engine of the same configuration in use which may have served as a starting point.
It was built for a military contract in 1963.

The idea that the Guzzi engine was developed from a tractor is without any reasonable question incorrect.
It is one of a type of story that appeals to lazy or incurious minds that would like to have a bit of "special knowledge" to impress themselves and their acquaintances, without actually knowing anything.
By now, it has become a meme, a free-floating idea that reproduces itself because of its attractiveness, spreading around the world to catch the unwary.
It may well be that the tough old Guzzi lump found it's way into a variety of vehicles, but it was designed firstly and foremost as a motorcycle engine, and was not derived from anything else.

 

[guzziguy]

and from this side of the pond, the glory is long gone. i wonder if they're related to the kardashians?

They are a relic from a bygone age that has long outlived it's usefullness.
For me personally, they are a painful reminder of the very dubious aspects of my country's history.

 

[firstbuell]

The idea that the Guzzi engine was developed from a tractor is without any reasonable question incorrect.
It is one of a type of story that appeals to lazy or incurious minds that would like to have a bit of "special knowledge" to impress themselves and their acquaintances, without actually knowing anything.
By now, it has become a meme, a free-floating idea that reproduces itself because of its attractiveness, spreading around the world to catch the unwary.
It may well be that the tough old Guzzi lump found it's way into a variety of vehicles, but it was designed firstly and foremost as a motorcycle engine, and was not derived from anything else.

my favorite V700 lore is that the motor was developed as a stationary engine for NATO

so riding a Guzzi is an anti-terrorist declaration of the highest order!

I wonder if there's any special "Kill AL-Quaeda" financing available for such a pro-Amuriken Italian bike.....?

 

[auntiebling]

They are a relic from a bygone age that has long outlived it's usefullness.
For me personally, they are a painful reminder of the very dubious aspects of my country's history.

every country has them, some are still living it. we have florida, arkansas, mississippi.... they tried to drop out of the union once but weren't allowed to.

 

[guzziguy]

my favorite V700 lore is that the motor was developed as a stationary engine for NATO

so riding a Guzzi is an anti-terrorist declaration of the highest order!

I wonder if there's any special "Kill AL-Quaeda" financing available for such a pro-Amuriken Italian bike.....?

There are loads of examples of 3/4 wheel vehicles using motorcycle engines.
The new Morgan three wheeler uses an S&S bike engine and I believe Fireblade engines are used in the Caterham.
How some people assume that because a bike engine is used in a vehicle other than a bike, that this is what that engine is derived from is beyond me

 

[maxandgrinch]

What particular reliability issues did you experience with Guzzi.
Would be interested to know.
I only ask because there are a lot of bar stool experts out there, who often comment based on stuff they read 30 years ago.
I suspect you're one of those very same bullshitters.
Look forward to hearing of your experiences of ownership.
Oh and I just seen what you ride

I am totally a bullshitter - duh.

As for what I have listed that I ride, its there as a test - to see if it wrecks my credibility or not. 2 wheels are 2 wheels, and that one is probably faster than a lot of bikes on the forum.

I don't have a decent relationship with a dealer where they would let me have one of their swollen V7 warranty replacement tanks for a LOLZ photo. I've also never told anyone that you will not get closer to a hand built motorcycle under $20k than with a Guzzi. Nope. Not a fan at all.

 

[guzziguy]

every country has them, some are still living it. we have florida, arkansas, mississippi.... they tried to drop out of the union once but weren't allowed to.

Yep.
This might sound strange, but I am a nationalist, and proudly so, just not a royalist.

 

[guzziguy]

I am totally a bullshitter - duh.

I don't have a decent relationship with a dealer where they would let me have one of their swollen V7 warranty replacement tanks for a LOLZ photo. I've also never told anyone that you will not get closer to a hand built motorcycle under $20k than with a Guzzi. Nope. Not a fan at all.

Swollen tanks ?
Is that the best you can do.
Come on.
Are you now going to tell me that I can't give you plenty of examples of poor build quality relating to Japanese and German bikes ?

 

[maxandgrinch]

What particular reliability issues did you experience with Guzzi.
Would be interested to know.
I only ask because there are a lot of bar stool experts out there, who often comment based on stuff they read 30 years ago.
I suspect you're one of those very same bullshitters.
Look forward to yhearing of your experiences of ownership.
Oh and I just seen what you ride

Now to address the rest of your comments which obviously touched a raw point:

My brand new, off the showroom floor with 2 miles when I did the test ride, 20 when I decided to buy, Norge wouldn't build up oil pressure. Found that they kinda forgot to make a hole in the gasket for the oil pickup to actually pick up oil.

Since they are your countrypersons - are they assembled by blind people or the inmates here?

I don't spend that much time on barstools - that is my stylish yellow bag on the seat of the moving van there, in the Italian Alps.

The gasket without the hole should have been obvious to even the most simple country folk. I was without a bike for weeks. Shit plastics too.

Genius design on the Norge for checking the oil: once again, the designers didn't expect it to be ridden, so they made it impossible to check the oil level. Why should function get in the way of design - it's Italian and dead sexy.

As set up, the oil access was a joke. Three body panels had to be removed to check/change/add oil. This was corrected with a Teo Lamer modified dipstick for the ‘07 and the new versions have a cutout for oil inspection.

Link

I gave it away, less than a year old, for 50% of what I paid for it. 2300 miles- had no faith in it.

Italian motorcycles sink in value like Francesco Schettino was riding it. Great if you're going to keep them until hell freezes over, or stick them upstairs as art.

My other MotoGuzzi experiences are as follows: PH let me borrow both of his Guzzi's for two weeks for a charity event. The two Moto Guzzi's I currently own - one is 60, the other is 56: not their model year but their age, start and run flawlessly every time, although the 56 year old is dripping more oil than I thought it would contain. Kurt - is that what it is like?

So, yeah, I'm pretty much full of shit.

With no experience and only what I read on the the internet to guide me towards the heavenly combination of 17/38 to get to Yutughh magic, I share my Guzzi experiences.

 

[guzziguy]

OK
Would you like to hear the whole sorry saga about the new FJ1200 I bought that the head lifted on, causing extensive damage.
Or how about the new V Max a friend of mine bought, that self destructed, the cause being a nut that had worked loose finding it's way into the engine totalling it.
What about the sorry saga about BMW's dreadful integrated servo assisted braking system that was know to be DANGEROUS when it broke down.
Phew.
I could go on, but I doubt you'll ever accept that anyone other than Guzzi can send out a duff bike,

 

[louemc]

Do I have to mention that when the original rear tire was taken off the rim, to put a new tire on My Guzzi Lemans...we saw the tube that was in the tire...with 3 patches on the tube...It came from the factory that way.

Anyone else ever get a patched tube...on a new bike..from the factory?

 

[guzziguy]

Do I have to mention that when the original rear tire was taken off the rim, to put a new tire on My Guzzi Lemans...we saw the tube that was in the tire...with 3 patches on the tube...It came from the factory that way.

Anyone else ever get a patched tube...on a new bike..from the factory?

Yes actually.
I had a blowout on a brand new Yamaha XS650 back in the 80's.
The tyre guy showed me the tube, which had been patched, which must have happened at the factory

Just remembered.
Does anyone remember the self destructing Honda V4's of the 80's.